Early childhood educators are the backbone of Detroit’s child care system — and too often, they do this essential work without access to the benefits and supports that make a career sustainable. A new partnership between the Michigan Department of Lifelong Education, Advancement, and Potential (MiLEAP) and The Kresge Foundation is working to change that. (Read the MiLEAP announcement here)

Focused on Detroit’s 48221 ZIP code, the neighborhood-based pilot brings together health insurance access, professional development  and coordinated supports for child care providers. By testing a place-based, layered approach to workforce support, the pilot aims to help educators thrive, strengthen programs and ultimately improve early learning outcomes for children and families.

“This partnership demonstrates how place-based strategies can expand opportunities and stability for families,” said Wendy Lewis Jackson, managing director of Kresge’s Detroit Program. “By surrounding early childhood educators with the supports they need – right in the neighborhoods where they live and teach – we are helping to build a stronger, more connected environment for children and families.”

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What is this pilot program?

A: This new neighborhood-based pilot serving child care providers in Detroit’s 48221 ZIP code will expand access to employee benefits, including health insurance, and provide coordinated supports to early childhood educators in the communities where they live and teach. The benefits will be available through Nurture Benefits, a program established by the Small Business Association of Michigan in partnership with MiLEAP, which offers comprehensive health, vision, dental, life insurance, and retirement benefits for child care providers.

Q: Who is eligible?

A: All licensed or license-exempt child care providers in Michigan working 30 or more hours per week are eligible for the Nurture Benefits program. Newly hired employees are eligible after 60 days of employment. For this specific neighborhood-based pilot, any eligible child care provider working in Detroit’s 48221 ZIP code is invited to apply.

Q: What do I have access to through this program? How can I sign up?

A: Participants in the 48221 ZIP code will receive support to access the Nurture Benefits program, which offers comprehensive health, vision, dental, life insurance and retirement benefits. Participants may also be eligible for a state-funded subsidy to reduce the cost of their insurance premiums. Eligible educators can sign up at nurturebenefits.com to enroll.

Q: I don’t work in the 48221 ZIP code. Can I still access Nurture Benefits?

A: Yes. The pilot focuses on the 48221 ZIP code to examine how layering resources — including health insurance and other coordinated supports — can improve the retention and sustainability of early educators in a specific neighborhood context. Nurture Benefits, however, is open to child care providers across Michigan.